Can I Get Punitive Damages if the Other Driver Was Drunk?

Being injured in a car accident caused by someone else is incredibly unfair—your life is turned upside down, and you suffer because another person acted irresponsibly. When an accident is caused by a drunk driver, the situation is even harder to accept. We all know the dangers of driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and yet the driver disregarded the safety of everyone for their own selfish desires.

The laws of Georgia recognize the unfairness of this tragic situation, and they provide extra ways to deter drunk driving and provide justice for those hurt by drunk drivers. When a drunk driver causes injuries or a wrongful death, that driver can be required to pay not only compensation for pain, suffering, and other losses, but also additional amounts known as punitive damages.

These damages aren’t available in every case, so it is important to review the details about what punitive damages involve and when a court may award these additional amounts.

The Difference Between Compensatory Damages and Punitive Damages

The aim of civil law is to restore what has been wrongfully taken—but that is often not possible in a literal sense. If someone took a cash bag with $1,000 in it, you could sue them for larceny, and the court would require them to pay you $1,000, plus money for your legal fees and other expenses. In that case, the compensation is very proportional to what you’ve lost.

But when you’re injured in a car or truck accident, the court can only do so much to compensate you for your losses. They can’t turn time back to before the accident so that your injuries are gone and the time you’ve lost from your life is restored. They can’t magically remove the disabilities and pain you’re left with after an accident.

What the court can do is award various amounts of money (referred to as damages) for a wide variety of economic and non-economic losses, including money for:

• Lost wages due to time off work
• Medical bills
• Property damage
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional anguish
• Loss of enjoyment of favorite activities
• Future medical needs
• Reduction in your ability to earn in the future

These types of damages are all intended to compensate you for specific ways that the injuries have impacted your life. Some amounts are calculated based on monetary figures, such as the value of your earnings or anticipated costs for future medical care. Other amounts are calculated based on legal rulings from comparable situations and legal arguments regarding the value of factors damaged or removed from the victim’s life. Since they are designed to compensate you, they are compensatory damages.

Punitive damages are not intended to provide compensation because compensatory damages are supposed to provide full compensation for losses. Instead, punitive damages are designed to punish bad behavior and serve as a warning to others that engaging in this type of behavior is going to cost them a lot. These damages can also be called “vindictive damages” or “exemplary damages.”

When Punitive Damages are Awarded

Section 51-12-5.1 of the Georgia Code describes punitive damages as “additional damages awarded because of aggravating circumstances in order to penalize, punish, or deter a defendant.” The statute goes on to specify that courts can only award punitive damages when the victim’s attorney proves by “clear and convincing evidence” that the person who caused the injuries acted with one of the following:

• Willful misconduct
• Malice
• Fraud
• Wantonness
• Oppression
• Behavior that is so irresponsible that it indicates “conscious indifference to consequences”

A court will not award punitive damages unless an attorney knows to ask for these damages and the attorney follows proper procedures for doing so. The standard of evidence for proving liability for punitive damages, clear and convincing evidence, is higher than the standard used to establish general liability, so the attorney representing the victim must present persuasive and well-documented arguments to succeed in obtaining these additional damages.

Punitive Damages in Drunk Driving Cases

In many cases, courts will often agree that driving while intoxicated shows an unacceptable indifference to the harm that can be caused as a consequence. The more evidence you can produce to show the extent of that indifference or wantonness, the more likely it is that the court will agree to award punitive damages and the greater the amount will be. 

For instance, when a driver has previous drunk driving offenses on their record or an extreme amount of alcohol in the blood, that can make the wrongdoing more apparent. Similarly, if a driver was driving at excessive speed or if they fled the scene, making it a hit-and-run situation, that also increases the wrongdoing and makes it more likely that punitive damages will be awarded.

Amount of Punitive Damages in Drunk Driving Cases

Georgia law does not set limits on the amount of punitive damages that can be awarded in cases where the defendant was operating under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs. In many other types of lawsuits, punitive damage awards are capped at $250,000. Since that limit does not apply in drunk driving cases, the amounts awarded for punitive damages can easily be $1,000,000 or more. However, the driver’s insurance policy may not cover punitive damages, so the actual recovery of punitive damage amounts may not be as high as it could be. An experienced attorney will evaluate all the facts before determining the right amount to request for punitive damages.

After a Drunk Driving Accident, Work with an Attorney Prepared to Fight for Punitive Damages

It takes extra effort to go after punitive damages in any type of accident case, so if you or a loved one have been injured by a drunk driver, make sure you work with a legal team that is prepared to seek the maximum damages for your situation, including punitive damages. At Michael M. Day Law Firm, we only focus on a limited number of cases at one time so that we can give full attention to obtaining the best recovery for every client. Extra evidence is needed to prove liability by clear and convincing evidence, so it is important to begin working right away to gather and preserve evidence after a drunk driving accident. We can help. To put our team to work for you, contact us now to schedule your free case evaluation and consultation.